Oh those folks at Apple are a busy bunch. They do not like people taking apart their products. So they have recently developed a new screw called a Pentalobe and one site even describes the new screw as a “Evil Proprietary Tamper Proof Five Point Screw” (or the EPTP5PS). The new screw requires a new tool, if one wishes to attempt a repair on the following Apple devices which include:

This isn’t the first time they’ve used this type of screw—it first appeared in the mid-2009 MacBook Pro to prevent you from replacing the battery—and Apple is using a similar screw on the outer case of the current MacBook Air. This screw is the primary reason the 11″ MacBook.

Apple is now including the Pentalobe in their latest release of their popular Apple iPhone 4. The newest models now come with the new screws which look like the illustration below:

So what is one to do if they want to crack open their iPhone or other device that Apple has applied the Pentalobe screw? One just needs to liberate themselves and go over to the iFixit web site where for just $9.95 one can buy the tools known as the iPhone 4 Liberation Kit.

The liberation kit includes two screw drivers that will deal with the new screws and provide you access to the Apple device of your choosing.

I believe that the only thing this type of thinking from Apple does is just to annoy customers and put independent providers at a disadvantage. But in a day in age where it is so simple to take a rendering of a screw and design a tool in minutes, Apple isn’t fooling anyone. For $10 you can crack their cases easily

Comments welcome.

Source – iFixit iPhone 4 Liberation Kit is here